Greetings, Alumni and Friends,

As you know, this is an extraordinary time for the UA College of Medicine. It’s also an extraordinary honor for me to have been appointed interim dean at this time.

I want to share a little bit about me, and my thoughts about this College of Medicine and its future.

My family and I moved to Tucson last year from Chapel Hill, where I was professor and chair of the Department of Emergency Medicine at the University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill and Director of Emergency Research at the Duke Clinical Research Institute.

I’m not the only doctor in my family.

My wife, Monica Kraft, MD, was chief of the Division of Pulmonary, Allergy and Critical Care and at Duke University, and director of the Duke Asthma, Allergy and Airway Center. Last August, when I was appointed vice dean, she was named chair of our UA Department of Medicine.

There are a lot of things we enjoy about living in Tucson, including the desert landscape, the rich cultural heritage, and the incredible climate that makes it easy to get outside and exercise.

As for the College of Medicine, I want to say how impressed I am by its educational strengths. There is a remarkable diversity of students, with representatives from throughout the state and across the country. The students are enthusiastic, compassionate and committed to positively impacting health care in Arizona and beyond.

We are in the midst of a remarkable evolution in the way health care is delivered in this country. I am confident our new partnership with Banner Health, and our ongoing collaborations with other colleges in the Arizona Health Sciences Center and the greater university, will strengthen us financially and academically. Indeed, I expect we will create a new academic model of health care delivery that others will follow.

A priority for us is to expand research opportunities within the College of Medicine. We recently completed a review of the outstanding opportunities already available at the college and the Arizona Health Sciences Center. I believe students are the key to future innovations. I will work diligently to connect our faculty and students with research mentors who are seeking solutions to many of the health challenges we face here and around the world.   

I think increasing the diversity of our students and faculty is especially important, and I fully support the work of our office of Diversity and Inclusion, under the direction of Dr. Francisco Moreno, deputy dean for diversity and inclusion, and notably our Pre-Medical Admissions Pathway program to medical school, which provides research opportunities and clinical experiences to students who have faced limited opportunities to prepare for medical school.

I know our College of Medicine owes its success in large part to you and your ongoing relationship with us. Your contributions have made us an outstanding medical school. I look forward to meeting you, and invite you to contact me either by email or phone – cairnsc@email.arizona.edu or (520) 626-0998.

My best wishes to all of you,

Charles “Chuck” Cairns, MD
Interim Dean, College of Medicine (COM) Tucson
Assistant Vice President, Clinical Research and Clinical Trials, Arizona Health Sciences
Professor of Emergency Medicine, COM - Tucson